Meeting with Speaker of Iran’s Parliament Ali Larijani

Belarus and
Iran are capable of reaching $1 billion in mutual trade, Belarus President
Alexander Lukashenko said at the meeting with Speaker of the Parliament of Iran
Ali Larijani on 7 September.

“I am
convinced that following your visit it will be possible to say that our
relations have risen to a higher level. We have wonderful political relations.
The economy, however, still leaves much to be desired. Trade and economic
relations should be more developed,” the head of state noted.

Alexander
Lukashenko stressed that the mutual trade of $300-400 million is nothing for
the potential of the two countries. “Our mutual trade needs to be $1 billion,”
the President said.

According to
the head of state, the Belarusian-Iranian relations should be more than just
partnership. “Our relations should be similar to those which very friendly and
close states have. We have all conditions for it. We have products that are
critical for Iran. We can also buy a lot of commodities from Iran,” said
Alexander Lukashenko.

According to
the President, the number one goal for the two states is to implement the
bilateral agreements. “We will do it on our part, I guarantee this to you,” the
Belarusian leader said.

Ali Larijani
thanked Alexander Lukashenko for the opportunity to visit Belarus, and also
conveyed greetings to the Belarusian head of state from the Iranian leadership.
“We also convinced that the Republic of Belarus is a friendly country for us,
and we fully trust it,” he stressed.

After the
meeting with the Belarusian head of state, the speaker of the Iranian
parliament told the media that Belarus and Iran have friendly relations. “We
enjoy close cooperation in the international arena, hold regular consultations
on important regional issues. The level of inter-parliamentary relations is
also very good,” he said.

When asked
about the ways to develop trade and economic cooperation and also the prospects
for reaching the level of trade set out by the Belarusian President, Ali Larijani
noted that Alexander Lukashenko voiced good ideas regarding the expansion of
the relations. “We agree with his opinion in general. There are many potential
opportunities both in Iran and Belarus which need to be intensified. We have
discussed agriculture, industry and other sectors. We will discuss these issues
with our counterparts in the Belarusian parliament,” he said.

As for
Belarus-Iran cooperation in the oil sector, Ali Larijani said: “One of the
aspects of our trade and economic cooperation is oil. We discuss all the
aspects of trade and economic relations.” The Iranian representative added that
impetus should be added to this and other areas of cooperation.